After 15 years of faithful service (and the last 3 as a daily driver) I finally had my first mechanical failure. Having a bit of a fun time on a country road..pulling out of a tight right hander in 3rd and suddenly a vary load clanging coming from the engine / transmission area. Shifted straightaway into 4th and the noise momentarily went away..at first I thought it must have done a bearing in the bottom end.. Until I went to select 3rd again.
So a trip home on the back of a NRMA tabletop was rather embarrassing. Luckily for me I still have a reco box in the shed that was re-coed in 2002. Took the sump off that box and everything is still fine. Fortunately I have found a semi-retired mechanic that does not charge the earth.
So a new clutch along with the reco box should last me another 15 years
